From 1 April 2026, Wales will change how kinship care is overseen. Welsh Ministers signed the Fostering Panels and Care Planning (Miscellaneous Amendments) (Wales) Regulations 2026 on 23 January, updating review timetables and tightening information‑sharing between fostering providers.

For children placed with relatives or friends-“connected persons” under the Social Services and Well‑being (Wales) Act 2014-statutory reviews can now be scheduled at intervals of up to 12 months. The responsible authority must agree the timetable after consulting the independent reviewing officer and the people involved in the placement. Previously, follow‑up reviews were capped at six months apart in all cases.

The rules on social worker visits are also refreshed after the initial checks. For connected‑person placements the minimum is once every six months. Where a placement is not a connected‑person arrangement but is intended to last until the young person turns 18, visits must be at least every three months. In any other case, the floor remains every six weeks.

Officials stress this is about proportionate oversight rather than cutting corners. Councils retain the ability to bring reviews or visits forward if circumstances change, while carers and young people can still ask for earlier checks when needed.

On fostering panels, the regulations clarify that “household” means everyone living in the home, including anyone there under a placement or other local authority arrangement. Assessments of prospective foster parents are tightened up to look squarely at household dynamics and capacity to meet the needs of a named child, alongside culture, language and faith considerations.

Where an applicant has been approved elsewhere and consents, Welsh providers must request previous assessment and review reports, along with relevant records. Those requests have to be made in writing. Any provider receiving a request must supply the information within 15 working days and cannot charge for it-an obligation that applies to and from providers in England.

That cross‑border point matters for councils and agencies operating along the England–Wales line, from North Wales into the North West. A clearer, time‑bound duty to share records should reduce duplication and speed up safe transfers when carers switch providers or when a placement crosses the border.

For kinship carers, moving to annual reviews should mean fewer formal meetings and more time focused on family life, with the safety net of bringing a review forward if things shift. It also gives independent reviewing officers room to agree a sensible rhythm with each household rather than defaulting to a one‑size‑fits‑all timetable.

Providers now have a firm date to work to. Between January and 1 April 2026, local authorities and fostering services will be updating templates, training and supervision schedules, and panel paperwork. Carers and supervising social workers should check how local services plan to set review cycles from April and how to trigger an earlier review.

For the record, this is Welsh Statutory Instrument 2026 No. 16, signed by Minister for Children and Social Care Dawn Bowden. It amends the Care Planning, Placement and Case Review (Wales) Regulations 2015 and the Fostering Panels (Establishment and Functions) (Wales) Regulations 2018 under the Social Services and Well‑being (Wales) Act 2014.